Easy Cheesy Muffins & Food Revolution Day

Prep Time:15 mins, Cook Time: 15 - 25 mins, Total Time: 30 - 40 mins

May 13, 2014

Did you know this Friday, 16th May, is Food Revolution Day? A day when grown ups across the World will be getting kids in the kitchen to cook up a global storm. It’s a day of foodie fun to raise awareness of the importance of getting the wee ones involved in cooking from an early age, getting them excited about food, recipes and what they choose to eat. Food Revolution Day is the baby of Jamie Oliver, of course: “It’s time to take action! We need every child to understand where food comes from, how to cook it, and how if affects their body. This is about setting kids up with the knowledge they need to make better food choices for life”.

It’s an issue dear to my heart and the very ethos and passion behind Eat Your Veg. As you know I’ve been cooking with my own kids since they were toddlers and now they’re four and five they’re surprisingly familiar with making a whole variety of soups, stews, pasta dishes, bakes and cakes with me. They’re always interested in what we make together, taking a very active part in anything they can and asking lots of questions. Sometimes too many!. And increasingly asking if foods are healthy for them, yay, I’m doing something right!.

I also work in my local primary school running healthy cooking from scratch sessions with years 1 to 6 children, which seems a little like my own wee food revolution! We’ve made anything from Bread Tarts, Healthier Sandwich Fillingsand Guacamole toChocolate & Beetroot BrowniesorMinestrone Soup, current themes, projects and curriculum depending. There’s also been several healthier foods taster sessions and a six week healthy lunchbox project last term. Tomorrow it’s a World Cup theme with Years 3 – 6 and we’re making Veggie & Bean Burritos with Tomato Salsa. The recipes for which will be posted shortly. I love my work at the school, about as much as the kids love cooking which says a lot! I’m looking forward to branching out to other local schools in the very near future, as well as running a few private kids cook sessions. It’s truly heartwarming to see the interest and intrigue from such young ages, and each week I’m staggered at the variety of foods I get the kids to taste and cook with. I’m always apprehensive they’ll try them and consistently bowled over by how adventurous they actually are!. Kids are great and truly are our future. So if you haven’t done so before take the plunge, ignore the mess and get your littlies in the kitchen and make your own food revolution. I can virtually promise you they’ll love it!

As for today’s recipe, it’s Easy Cheesy Muffins. We love a savoury cheesy muffin round here, probably more than a sweet bake or cake, my kids both being cheese fiends. And me being me I can’t help but throw a few sneaky veggies in for added nutrition and I always use half spelt flour (or wholemeal if you cannot source) too. In this recipe I’ve used a mix of tomatoes, sweetcorn and spinach, but you could use grated carrot or courgette, finely chopped peppers, cooked broccoli or cauliflower florets or even a few peas. I deliberately used spinach as it’s a veggie my kids would not normally eat, but when baked in such a delicacy they don’t bat an eyelid. And it’s always good to remind them at a later fussy moment!.

Muffins are a great little make for the littlies in your life, lots of whisking, stirring, dolloping and cheesy sprinkling action. And pretty healthy to boot. Great to serve as a snack or as part of lunch or dinner. Or pop into a lunchbox or take on a picnic. And they freeze perfectly too.

And just before I go here’s my first ever video on Eat Your Veg! Just a minute of a camera-shy Jacques dolloping the muffin mix on one of our Friday afternoon baking sessions, believe me he’s not normally this quiet. Watch out for more in the next few weeks, maybe even I’ll get it together to get behind the camera myself!

1) Preheat your oven to 200ºc/180ºc fan/Gas Mark 6.
2) Melt the butter in a microwave, set aside to cool for a few minutes.
3) Grab a small child if you have one and get them to lightly whisk the eggs together with the milk, followed by the slightly cooled butter. Set aside.
4) Dice the tomato fairly finely, even a very young child can do this with a safe toddler knife or a plastic serrated lettuce knife. Set aside.
5) Grate the cheese and set aside, unless you have a child-friendly grater or an older child this is best done by an adult.
6) Into a large bowl get them sieving the flours, baking powder and mustard. Stir together with the black pepper.
7) Make a well in the middle of the flour and stir in the egg, milk and butter mix. Stir in the tomatoes, two thirds of the cheese, sweetcorn and spinach. Kids really love this bit!
8) Dollop the mixture into the paper cases with a spoon. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the tops.
9) Place in the pre-heated oven for 15 minutes for small muffins or up to 25 minutes for larger ones.

Oh your little helper is so adorable and looking so serious too 🙂 I keep meaning to make some savoury scones or savoury muffins, hope to get round to it some time soon. These look so good. Thanks for sharing for Eat Your Veg.

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